Divine Art Records

Label: Historic Sound

  • Peter Warlock: Collected 78rpm recordings (2CD)

    Peter Warlock: Collected 78rpm recordings (2CD)

    Philip Heseltine, aka Peter Warlock, was an enigma in many ways – song-writing and arranging genius; fine orchestrator – but also a political animal, bon-viveur and ultimately a self-absorbed depressive who took his own life. This 2 CD set comprises (with one exception) all the recordings of Warlock’s work issued on standard-groove records, between 1925 and 1951 – all lovingly collected by the late John Bishop, stalwart of the Peter Warlock Society, which has generously assisted with the production of this album whcih can be seen as a tribute to one of England’s most influential composers of the early 20th century. Detailed notes on the man and his music, and these recordings, are included. Performers include some of Britain’s finest of the age.

    The ‘missing’ item is a recording of ‘The Curlew’ by John Armstrong with the International String Quartet – this omission was not taken lightly, but would have required a 3rd CD making the set quite expensive – the recording is available via Pristine Audio

    TRACKS:

    Capriol Suite
    London Chamber Orch/Bernard
    Serenade for Strings
    NGS Chamber Orchestra/Barbirolli
    Purcell/Warlock: Fantaisie no. 3
    The Pasquier Trio
    Purcell/Warlock: 2-Part Fantasia no. 9
    The Griller String Quartet
    Capriol Suite (arr. Szigeti)
    Josef Szigeti & Nikita Magalov
    The Curlew
    Soames, Nielsen, Aeolian String Quartet
    Serenade for Strings
    Capriol Suite
    Constant Lambert String Orch. /Lambert
    Captain Stratton’s Fancy
    Peter Dawson
    Oh Good Ale;
    Flow not fast ye fountains; There is a garden; O eyes, O mortal stars; Come, my Celia
    John Goss
    Corpus Christi
    The English Singers
    Sleep; Chop Cherry
    John Armstrong/ International String Qt.
    The Fox; Sleep; Take o take those lips away; Sweet and Kind; As Ever I Saw; The Passionate Shepherd
    Parry Jones
    Corpus Christi
    Ann Jones, Peter Pears, BBC Chorus
    A Cornish Christmas Carol
    BBC Chorus/Woodgate
    Six Nursery Jingles
    Cecil Cope
    Milkmaids; Captain Stratton’s Fancy; Sigh no More; Pretty Ring Time; Passing By; My Own Country; Fair and True; Piggesnie
    Roy Henderson
    Sweet and Twenty; Sleep
    Nancy Evans
    Rest Sweet Nymphs
    Truro County Girls’ School Choir
    The First Mercy
    Billy Neeley
    Corpus Christi
    Flora Nielsen, Rene Soames, Festival Singers
    The Frostbound Wood; The Fox
    Dennis Noble
    Captain Stratton’s Fancy
    Oscar Natzke

  • Gounod: FAUST

    Gounod: FAUST

    Our most ambitious vintage recording yet, this version of Faust (in Italian) was recorded by La Scala Milan, under the baton of Carlo Sabajno, in 1920 using the acoustic recording process. Magnificently restored and re-mastered by Andrew Rose of Pristine Audio, this is THE classic opera performance and not to be missed.

    The CD booklet contains full libretto in Italian, and the English, French and Italian librettos are provided in a PDF file on the CD which can be printed from any PC.

    The digital album includes the main booklet and the triple libretto is available in PDF format on request.

  • Moeran: The collected 78rpm recordings

    Moeran: The collected 78rpm recordings

    Though E.J. Moeran is one of the leading British composers of the 20th century,very little of his music was commercially recorded during his lifetime – this is all of it!
    This performance of the Symphony from 1942 is still widely regarded as the best version ever recorded.
    CD contains:
    String Trio in G major (recorded 1941)
    Jean Pougnet, Frederick Riddle, Anthony Pini
    Symphony in G minor (recorded 1942)
    The Halle Orchestra, conducted by Leslie Heward
    Songs:
    Diaphenia and The Sweet o’ the Year (recorded 1945)

    Heddle Nash (tenor)
    O Sweet fa’s the Eve (recorded 1925)
    Can’t you Dance the Polka? (recorded 1925)
    Sheep Shearing (recorded 1926)
    John Goss (baritone) & Cathedral Male Voice Quartet

  • Bizet: Carmen

    Bizet: Carmen

    Raymonde Visconti, Georges Thill, Louis Guénot, Andreé Vavon, Andreé Bernadet, Choeur et Orchestre Symphonique de Paris, conducted by Elie Cohen*

    This classic recording of the world’s most popular opera, made in and around 1928, has previously only had very limited exposure on LP or CD. While advertised and labelled as being by the Paris Symphony, the forces are actually those of the Opéra-Comique. In Georges Thill, playing Don José, we have the greatest French tenor of the century, and overall this is a memorable performance, as ever restored with great skill by Pristine Audio.

    DRAMATIS PERSONAE:

    Carmen: Raymonde Visconti (mezzo-soprano)
    Don José: Georges Thill (tenor)
    Micaëla: Marthe Nespoulpous (soprano)
    Escamillo: Louis Guénot (baritone)
    Frasquita: Andreé Vavon (soprano)
    Mercédès: Andreé Bernadet (soprano)
    Dancaïro: Robert Roussel (tenor)
    Remendado: Téo Mathyl (tenor)

    * The Flower Song (CD1, track 13) recorded in 1927 and conducted by Philippe Gaubert.

  • Coates and Moeran: Violin Concertos

    Coates and Moeran: Violin Concertos

    RARE BRITISH MUSIC!!
    Runner-up, Concerto category, Classic Record Collector Awards 2006

    Colin Sauer (violin) with the BBC Northern Orchestra* conducted by Sir Charles Groves:
    VIOLIN CONCERTO in D (1934) by Douglas Coates

    (live broadcast performance 1951)

    Alfredo Campoli (violin) with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Sir Adrian Boult:
    VIOLIN CONCERTO (1937-41) by E J Moeran
    (live broadcast performance 1954)

    * now the BBC Philharmonic

    A ONE AND ONLY…
    In 1951, the BBC was under the spell of modernism and the Second Viennese School and was awfully dismissive of anything approaching tonality as many veteran composers can attest. So it was that after recording a live broadcast of the unashamedly tuneful and Romantic Violin Concerto by English composer Douglas Coates, the harsh comments about ‘obsolete and meaningless music’ from conductor Charles Groves and the program producers so upset the composer that on his way home he disposed of score and parts (the only copies) into the Thames. As the BBC did not record the concert, the work was totally lost to posterity. Until by a trillion-to-one chance, a collector came across a set of studio acetate discs in a junk shop marked only ‘Coates Concerto’. Long story short – after two years of research and audio restoration of the discs (again the sole copy in existence), producer Stephen Sutton at Divine Art Records was able to release the recording on his Historic Sound label also including a 1950 Adrian Boult performance of the Moeran concerto.

    The one and only performance in remarkable though of course ‘vintage’ sound. End of story and a very popular album. Except that a music fan has been in touch with some news: he was born in Coates’ home town; his wife was actually present at the performance (in Manchester), spent time with the composer and conductor, and (having just discovered the said recording) 69 years later, these wonderful people intend to have the score reconstructed (an expert has been identified..) so that this vibrant work can once again see the light of the concert hall. If the reconstruction is successful the plan is for it to be published by Divine Art and hopefully a gala performance will take place in London at some point.

  • Milhaud: Orchestral Music

    Milhaud: Orchestral Music

    A variety of historic treasures:

    SERENADE FOR ORCHESTRA
    TROIS RAG CAPRICES
    SUITE FROM “MAXIMILIEN”
    CINQ ETUDES FOR PIANO AND ORCHESTRA *
    Vienna Symphony Orchestra / Henry Swoboda
    *with Paul Badura-Skoda (piano)
    SYMPHONIC SUITE No. 2 (Protee)
    San Francisco Symphony Orchestra / Pierre Monteux
    Little Symphony No. 3

    Pougnet, Pini, Kell, Draper & Eskdale, conducted by Walter Goehr
    Trio for Violin, Clarinet & Piano
    Parrenin, Delecuse & Haas-Hamburger

  • Sibelius Symphonies 5 & 6, Tapiola

    Sibelius Symphonies 5 & 6, Tapiola

    Both conductors on this CD knew Sibelius and their interpretations (in each case the earliest recordings) are considered by many still to be definitive. Kajanus was engaged by The Gramophone Company (HMV) to produce their Sibelius Society sets; however after his death Schneevoigt was brought in to conduct the magnificent Sixth in 1934. The “Finnish National Orchestra” was not a regular ensemble but appears to have consisted of the Helsinki Philharmonic augmented by members of the Finnish Radio Orchestra.

    Definitive Interpretations – these conductors were colleagues and friends of the composer
    Symphony no. 5 and Tapiola recorded 1932
    LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA cond. ROBERT KAJANUS
    Symphony no. 6 recorded 1934
    FINNISH NATIONAL ORCHESTRA cond. GEORG SCHNEEVOIGT

  • Mendelssohn: ELIJAH

    Mendelssohn: ELIJAH

    The first ever complete recording of this favourite oratorio from 1930.
    Cast includes:
    HAROLD WILLIAMS as Elijah

    ISOBEL BAILLIE     as an Angel
    PARRY JONES as Obadiah
    CLARA SERENA as an Angel
    TOM PURVIS as Ahab, with
    BERKELEY MASON (organ), THE WIRELESS SINGERS,
    BBC NATIONAL CHORUS & ORCHESTRA
    conducted by STANFORD ROBINSON
    Superb vintage performances and much critical acclaim.

  • Beethoven: Piano Trios

    Beethoven: Piano Trios

    TRIO SANTOLIQUIDO present immortal performances of
    Piano Trio No 3 in C minor (rec.1942)
    Piano Trio no 5 in D (“Ghost Trio”)(rec 1952)
    Piano Trio no 11 in G (“Kakadu Variations”)(rec 1952)

  • Bach: The Art of Fugue

    Bach: The Art of Fugue

    THE ROTH QUARTET
    play the string quartet arrangement of Bach’s finest masterpiece composed by Roy Harris and M D H Norton.
    This historically important document also includes the conjectural completion composed and played by Sir Donald Tovey.
    Recorded 1934/1935 and digitally re-mastered by Pristine Audio.

  • Cavalleria Rusticana / Pagliacci (2 CD set)

    Cavalleria Rusticana / Pagliacci (2 CD set)

    Perhaps among the greatest performances ever made in English of these two short operas.
    Sung in English by Heddle Nash, Miriam Licette, May Blyth, Dennis Noble, Harold Williams, Frank Mullings, Marjorie Parry and Justine Griffiths with the Chorus and Orchestra of the British National Opera Company conducted by Eugene Goossens (Cav) and Aylmer Buesst (Pag)

    Recorded in 1927 and digitally re-mastered by Pristine Audio.